China's Liaoning and Shandong aircraft carriers sail beyond second island chain
In an unprecedented show of strength, the Chinese aircraft carriers Liaoning and Shandong have been exercising in the western Pacific Ocean beyond the
second island chain , according to the Japanese defence ministry.
In a statement on Monday, the ministry said the
Shandong strike group was spotted earlier that day, conducting take-off and landing operations of its jet fighters and helicopters about 500km (311 miles) southwest of Iwo Jima and north of Okinotori.
It followed the ministry's statement on Sunday that the
Liaoning group had been located on Saturday 300km (186 miles) southwest of Minamitori Island. It was seen again on Sunday, a little further away. The carrier was also reported to be operating its ship-borne air wings.
All of the isles mentioned are in
Japan's Ogasawara Islands, also known as the Bonins. Alongside Guam and the rest of the Marianas, as well as the western Carolines and other small Pacific archipelagos, they form a strategic band known as the second island chain.
Most notably, the Liaoning group travelled further east than Guam, the most fortified US military base in the band, marking the first time a Chinese navy carrier has reached beyond the second island chain.
Previous deployments – by the Liaoning in December 2022 and the Shandong in April 2023 – were some distance northwest of Guam. The Liaoning's easternmost recorded location this time was about 3,200km (1,990 miles) from Midway Atoll and 5,500km (3,420 miles) from Hawaii.
The two 60,000-tonne Kuznetsov-class vessels – the PLA Navy's only active carriers, with the Fujian still undergoing sea trials – were escorted by warships of significant size, representing China's most powerful maritime strike forces to date.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
South China Morning Post
2 days ago
- South China Morning Post
China's Liaoning and Shandong aircraft carriers sail beyond second island chain
In an unprecedented show of strength, the Chinese aircraft carriers Liaoning and Shandong have been exercising in the western Pacific Ocean beyond the second island chain , according to the Japanese defence ministry. In a statement on Monday, the ministry said the Shandong strike group was spotted earlier that day, conducting take-off and landing operations of its jet fighters and helicopters about 500km (311 miles) southwest of Iwo Jima and north of Okinotori. It followed the ministry's statement on Sunday that the Liaoning group had been located on Saturday 300km (186 miles) southwest of Minamitori Island. It was seen again on Sunday, a little further away. The carrier was also reported to be operating its ship-borne air wings. All of the isles mentioned are in Japan's Ogasawara Islands, also known as the Bonins. Alongside Guam and the rest of the Marianas, as well as the western Carolines and other small Pacific archipelagos, they form a strategic band known as the second island chain. Most notably, the Liaoning group travelled further east than Guam, the most fortified US military base in the band, marking the first time a Chinese navy carrier has reached beyond the second island chain. Previous deployments – by the Liaoning in December 2022 and the Shandong in April 2023 – were some distance northwest of Guam. The Liaoning's easternmost recorded location this time was about 3,200km (1,990 miles) from Midway Atoll and 5,500km (3,420 miles) from Hawaii. The two 60,000-tonne Kuznetsov-class vessels – the PLA Navy's only active carriers, with the Fujian still undergoing sea trials – were escorted by warships of significant size, representing China's most powerful maritime strike forces to date.
South China Morning Post
5 days ago
- South China Morning Post
‘It will likely end with our generation,' Japan's last ‘hidden Christians' face extinction
On the island of Ikitsuki, in western Japan, the last members of a local Christian church gather to intone a unique prayer that blends Latin, Portuguese, and Japanese languages. The Kakure Kirishitan, or 'hidden Christians' in Japanese, are descendants of the first Christian converts from the 16th century who had to hide their religion to avoid persecution by warlords. Today, the Kakure church faces extinction as the number of followers has dwindled over the years, and the younger generation is leaving their ancestral homes to work in urban centres.
South China Morning Post
6 days ago
- South China Morning Post
Gen Z Japanese kiwi farmer shows Fukushima ‘moving forward' 14 years after nuclear disaster
A short drive from the Fukushima nuclear disaster site, novice farmer Takuya Haraguchi tends to his kiwi saplings under the spring sunshine, bringing life back to a former no-go zone. Haraguchi was 11 years old when Japan's strongest earthquake on record struck in March 2011, unleashing a tsunami that left 18,500 people dead or missing. The wall of water crashed into the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant on Japan's northeast coast, causing a devastating meltdown. At the time, the bookish young Haraguchi, who grew up far away in Osaka , feared that radiation would make the whole country uninhabitable. Haraguchi, from Osaka, was 11 when the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami caused a meltdown at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant. Photo: AFP But now, aged 25, the new resident of the rural town of Okuma says he believes in the future of Fukushima 'Everyone knows about the nuclear accident. But not many people know about this area, and how it's moving forward,' Haraguchi, tanned from working on his farm, says.
